Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Florida Batters Hurricane Helene; New York Mayor Indicted on Federal Charges Related to Corruption; United States Announces Fresh Aid to Ukraine Ahead of President Zelenskyy's Meeting with President Biden; StopGap Bill Finally Passed by Lawmakers, Funding to Continue through December 20; Two New Chinese Pandas Arrive in Hong Kong; Caitlyn Clark Named AP-WNBA Rookie of the Year Despite Her Team's Exit at the Playoffs. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired September 26, 2024 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, Hurricane Helene takes aim at Florida's Gulf Coast, set to make landfall later today as a major catastrophic storm. What we know about the potential impact for people in the southeast.

And the Biden administration pushing for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah as the two continue to trade fire, what it will take for both sides to agree to stop hostilities.

Plus, New York's mayor indicted in a federal investigation. We'll hear his defiant response and look at what charges he could be facing.

A massive hurricane churning through the Gulf of Mexico is on track to be the strongest to hit the U.S. in more than a year. Hurricane Helene already dumped torrential rains on Mexico and Cuba, just a preview of what's in store for the southern United States. It is a category one hurricane at the moment, but the forecast was enough to prompt evacuations in Florida.

Helene is expected to make landfall as a category four storm later today with catastrophic winds, record rainfall, and life-threatening flooding. Florida's governor warned there could be significant damage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): This could, as I mentioned, be a major hurricane. It could hit as a major hurricane. Some models even have it as a category four, but I think a lot of people are expecting at least a category three. It is a fast-moving storm. It's projected to leave up to 12 inches of rainfall and the storm surge could reach 10 to 15 feet in some areas, which is of course very, very significant.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico are fueling Helene's growth and experts say it could become one of the largest hurricanes of the modern era. At its peak, the hurricane could expand to about 450 miles across, roughly the distance from Washington, D.C. to Indianapolis.

Right now 86 million Americans are under hurricane and tropical storm warnings or watches. And five states across the southern U.S. are under emergency declarations ahead of the hurricane making landfall. Now this will be the third hurricane in just over a year to hit the area of Florida referred to as the Big Bend. And residents tell CNN affiliate WCTV they are tired of the hurricane season.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILIP LAMBERT, FLORIDA RESIDENT: It's like a bad dream over and over. It's like as soon as you get cleaned up for one storm, six months later you're getting hit again, or eight months later you're getting hit again. So it's constantly picking up tree limbs and just, it's stressful, but you know, as long as the insurance rates don't keep going up, it might be all right. You just got to survive, push through it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is in Florida as residents prepare for the storm's arrival.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: If this storm surge measurement is any indication of what's to come with approaching hurricane Helene, then here in Apalachicola, we need to prepare for the worst. This shading of blue represents the potential storm surge inundation from a category 4 land flying hurricane, which we are anticipating here. This is for a category 3, and this shading of red is inundation with a category 2 hurricane.

Now with over 10 feet of storm surge right here where I'm located, that's what's in the forecast. You can see that is nearly twice as high as how tall I am. This is the storm that people here have feared for their entire lives.

And the reason this area is so susceptible to storm surge and hurricanes is because of the shallow nature of the Gulf of Mexico over my right shoulder. You can go 50 miles out into the Gulf of Mexico and have only 10, 20 feet of water underneath you. Now that shelf actually drops off very quickly. So an approaching storm pushes up the water from the eastern Gulf of Mexico and that hits the shelf and it has nowhere to go but up, of course, inundating this portion, the low- lying area of Florida's Big Bend.

[03:04:48]

Now we're under a mandatory evacuation here. Now we know that this storm is not only going to bring the catastrophic winds to the coastline of Florida, the Gulf coastline of Florida, but the feeling, the expanse of the storm is going to be significant because it's only growing in size.

So not only intensifying in strength but also growing in size. It could be one of the largest storms in terms of its wind field in modern record keeping. That is incredible, even eclipsing Hurricane Katrina. That means the effects of this system will be felt well outside of the center.

Now once the storm races inland, it's going to bring these hurricane- forced gusts into central and southern Georgia as well. There's a lot of trees between here and Atlanta Metro, for instance.

So expect extended duration power outages, and then not to mention the potential at least for unprecedented catastrophic flooding as the system dumps over at least 10 inches, maybe upwards of 15 inches in some locations across portions of South Carolina, Georgia, and into North Carolina.

Derek Van Dam, Apalachicola.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: We turn now to the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. A top general is telling Israeli troops to prepare for a possible ground incursion into Lebanon. The Lebanese Health Ministry reports at least 81 people were killed in the third day of Israeli strikes on Wednesday. That pushes the death toll since Monday well past 600.

Israel claims it has hit more than 2,000 targets including 70 Hezbollah intelligence facilities. At the United Nations, the U.S. and France are calling for a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. And here's U.S. President Joe Biden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: As you can see, we put out a statement for a 21-day ceasefire along the Israeli-Lebanese border. We are able to generate significant support from Europe as well as the Arab nations. It's important that war not widen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: An umbrella group of Iran-backed militias is claiming responsibility for a drone attack on the Israeli port city of Eilat. The IDF says two people were slightly injured.

And CNN's Paula Hancocks joins me now live from Abu Dhabi. Paula, we are learning about new Israeli strikes into Lebanon. What can you tell us about that?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, we've heard from the Israeli military that overnight the Air Force did strike about 75 targets in southern Lebanon and also in the Beqaa Valley, saying that they were focusing on weapons storages, also launchers that they say we're ready to fire and also Hamas, excuse me, Hezbollah operatives. Now, another announcement from the military which is fairly unusual at this point in the war in Gaza.

There were also launches from Khan Younis in Gaza. We hear from the Israeli military they say there were several launches from that area that's in the southern part of the Gaza Strip and they were intercepted. So even as all eyes are on the northern Israel border with Lebanon, there is still fighting ongoing in Gaza itself.

Now what we've heard from the U.S. over the past 12 hours or so is really a push to try and secure a 21-day ceasefire on the Israeli- Lebanon border, saying that they hope that it would allow residents to move back to their homes and they also hope that it would give space and time for the stalled talks in Gaza to resume, the ceasefire hostage talks that have effectively stalled as of this point.

Now as to whether that 21-day ceasefire would even be entertained by both sides, we hear from a senior U.S. official that it is an important breakthrough. And officials also say that both sides are familiar with the contours of this deal and they voiced optimism when it was pointed out that it was going to be made public.

We've heard from an Israeli official that the Israeli Prime Minister has given his government the green light to at least engage with U.S. mediators when it comes to this potential ceasefire. But when you look at what's happening on the ground at this point, it does seem a very tall order to be able to push this ceasefire through, especially as we are now hearing more direct suggestions from the Israeli military that there will be a ground incursion into southern Lebanon. This is the IDF Chief of Staff.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERZI HALEVI, CHIEF OF THE GENERAL STAFF, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (through translator): Today we will continue. We are not stopping. We keep striking and hitting them everywhere. The goal is very clear, to safely return the residents of the North. To achieve that, we are preparing the process of a maneuver, which means your military boots, your maneuvering boots, will enter enemy territory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:10:01]

HANCOCKS: The IDF saying that the aerial bombardment on Hezbollah targets over the past week has been to allow a ground offensive to go ahead. We also know that the IDF has called up two reserve brigades to the area as well. Another suggestion that at least the preparations are in place but potentially the political will is there as well. Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Paula Hancocks joining us there with that live report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to arrive in New York today in advance of his speech to the U.N. General Assembly on Friday. He left Tel Aviv just a short time ago. World leaders have been calling for an end to the fighting between Hezbollah and Israel as well as the war in Gaza. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says the situation in Lebanon is on the brink of an all-out catastrophe. Lebanon's foreign minister and the Palestinian Authority president are scheduled to address the General Assembly today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D), NEW YORK CITY: These charges will be entirely false based on lies. But they would not be surprising. I always knew that if I stood my ground for all of you, that I would be a target and a target I became.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: New York City Mayor Eric Adams is insisting he is innocent after being indicted on at least one federal criminal charge. Sources familiar with the matter say Adams will have several days to turn himself in. The charges he's facing are not publicly known at this time. The indictment follows months of federal investigation into campaign fundraising violations. While Adams says he will not step down, another New York lawmaker says he should.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): Right now I think this is squarely about Mayor Adams' ability to govern New York City and for the New York City governance to be fully staffed to serve the people of New York City.

And frankly, under this constant stream of scandal, I do not know if the city will be able to even name replacements for all of these resignations and vacancies at this point. And so it is a very unfortunate time. We do not want to see this happening in our city, but unfortunately it is. And I think for the best of the city and so that we can continue to staff the administration of the city, it would be best for Mayor Adams to step down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The indictment intensifies the legal troubles gripping City Hall, where federal probes have been targeting the mayor's inner circle.

Later today, lawyers for Donald Trump will try to convince a New York appeals court to overturn a $454 million judgment. Earlier this year, Trump, his two older sons and his business were found liable for fraud, as well as issuing false financial statements and business records. The judge ruled Trump inflated the value of his assets to get more favorable terms for loans and insurance.

The former U.S. President is not expected to appear in court. No decision is likely until after the November presidential election. Over the past month, Trump's legal team has tried to get multiple cases thrown out, including special counsel Jack Smith's federal election interference case, as well as the guilty verdict in the hush money criminal case and the defamation verdict.

Well Kamala Harris is taking aim at Trump's economic plan, saying it would lead to a recession. During an interview with MSNBC, the Democratic presidential nominee said his threat to impose a broad hike on tariffs shows he's just not very serious, adding, that's not an idea you just throw around. The vice president said the U.S. will need to raise corporate taxes to pay for her economic initiatives which include an expanded child care credit and assistance for first-time home buyers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS (D), U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Top economists in our country, from Nobel laureates to people at Moody's and Goldman Sachs have compared my plan with his and said my plan would grow the economy, his would shrink the economy. Some of them have actually assessed that his plan would increase inflation and invite a recession by the middle of next year.

So the facts remain that Donald Trump has a history of taking care of very rich people. My perspective on the economy is when you grow the middle class, America's economy is stronger. And there's empirical evidence to prove my point correct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Harris also responded to Trump's recent claim that he is a, quote, protector of women. She argued that he actually punished women by appointing three Supreme Court justices who helped overturn federal abortion rights.

[03:15:02]

Joining me now is Ron Brownstein, CNN's senior political analyst and senior editor of "The Atlantic." Great to have you with us.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST AND SR. EDITOR, "THE ATLANTIC": Hey, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are out stumping in battleground states in a desperate bid to attract undecided voters and they are dueling over the top issue for voters, the economy. CNN's latest poll shows that most voters actually trust Trump over Harris on this issue, despite the Biden administration reducing the inflation rate faster than any other nation in the world.

And in a national interview Wednesday, Harris said that Trump's economic plan would invite a recession. So what is the true story on the economy, who would better guide the nation on this critical issue, and why can't the Biden administration convince the voters on this?

BROWNSTEIN: Yeah, well, first of all, I think this speech really underscores the extent to which we are looking at very divergent visions of how the federal government manages the economy.

Trump, even more than in 2020 or 2016, is laying out a vision of a kind of fortress America economy with high walls of tariffs, severe restrictions on immigration, a mass deportation program, and lower tax rates, which, by the way, those three things are pretty much the formula that Republican presidents employed during the 1920s in the decade before the depression.

Harris today made clear that she wants to extend the kind of neo- industrial policy of the Biden administration, with a lot of tax cuts to steer investment both toward industries, where she says it's important for the U.S. to compete, but also toward places that have been left behind in many ways.

And this has been probably the signal success of the Biden economic strategy, all the existing tax incentives that she wants to build on in the Inflation Reduction Act have generated a torrent of private investment, primarily in clean energy, primarily in Republican-held districts.

The problem that Biden and Harris have had is that success and the other economic successes of low unemployment, a lot of job growth, high stock market have really all been overshadowed for voters, eclipsed for voters by the increase in prices during his first few years in office. And even though inflation is coming down, prices themselves are not coming down. And that makes it hard for Harris to prevail over Trump when voters are asked who they trust more on the economy.

CHURCH: So, Ron, how many voters are actually still undecided on who to support in this historically tight race and what are they waiting to hear from the candidates that would convince them either way when we've really just got so little time between now and the election?

BROWNSTEIN: So, I actually have a piece coming out tomorrow looking at this in some depth, what we think of as undecided voters. When we use the phrase, usually we're thinking about someone that the campaigns call a persuadable voter, which is someone who is pretty certain to vote. But uncertain, whether they're going to vote for Harris or Trump, there really aren't that many of those voters.

I think, the campaigns believe it might be somewhere between four at the low and maybe seven percent of voters in the swing states and these are idiosyncratic voters they tend to be either a white collar Republican Nikki Haley-type voters or blue collar media in common below younger non-white voters kind of hard to see how they're going to sort out.

But there's a much bigger group of undecided voters Rosemary, which is what the candidates call, what the campaigns call irregular voters. 80 million people were eligible in 2020 and didn't vote. That is the real reward here. That is the real prize for the two campaigns. Can they move out more of the people who are pretty certain who they would vote for, but are uncertain whether it's worth it to vote at all?

CHURCH: Ron Brownstein, great to talk with you. Many thanks.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me. CHURCH: Still to come, Russia announces changes to its nuclear policy.

Vladimir Putin is emphasizing a key distinction linked to the war in Ukraine.

Plus, the Biden administration unveils a new round of aid for Ukraine ahead of a key meeting at the White House with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. We'll explain on the other side of the break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Russia says it has changed its official nuclear policy because of Ukrainian strikes that are backed by the West. President Vladimir Putin warned nuclear weapons could be deployed if Russia is struck by conventional weapons. He also said Moscow would consider any attack on its territory by a non-nuclear state that's supported by a nuclear power to be a joint attack. The change comes as the U.S. and U.K. consider whether to give Ukraine permission to fire conventional western missiles into Russian territory.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's president visits Washington later today to make an urgent in-person plea for more help. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to meet separately with U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Mr. Zelenskyy is expected to share his victory plan with the White House.

The Biden administration is pledging long-term support for Ukraine despite political uncertainty. The U.S. announced a new aid package for Kyiv on Wednesday worth $375 million. That is nearly double the size of recent shipments and more could be on the way.

Well CNN's Clare Sebastian is following developments for us. She joins us now live from London. Good morning to you, Clare. So what is expected to come out of this upcoming meeting today between President Biden and President Zelenskyy?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Rosemary, I think this meeting is emerging as a real watershed moment for Ukraine. This is a situation that is looking increasingly urgent, and it is the moment where we are going to finally, or at least the U.S. president will finally learn the details of Ukraine's long trailed victory plan.

[03:25:06]

Now, according to people briefed on the contours of this plan. It will include a request for long-term security guarantees, even more than Ukraine currently has bilaterally with a number of allies, an attempt there clearly to sort of future-proof Ukraine aid and support from the West, given that we're now just over a month out from the U.S. election.

It will also include an argument, we believe, according to these sources from Zelenskyy that Ukraine can win if enough aid is rushed in. So this is quantity and the speediness of those deliveries that he is likely to emphasize.

And as you noted there, it will very likely include a continued request from Ukraine to be able to use long-range Western missiles on targeted attacks on Russian soil, military targets and things like that. Obviously Russia watching that one very closely.

But it is also urgent because of the U.S. political calendar as I said, and that comments and the rhetoric coming out of the Trump campaign this week has been increasingly strident, really setting up this view that the U.S. election could really be a binary choice when it comes to aid for Ukraine. Take a listen to former President Trump on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Look at the war in Ukraine, and I think it's something we have to have a quick discussion about because the president of Ukraine is in our country and he's making little nasty aspersions toward your favorite president. Those cities are gone. They're gone. And we continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal, Zelenskyy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEBASTIAN: Those cities are gone, he said. He continues also in the speech to say Ukraine is gone. So this is now jarring echoes, not only of Kremlin rhetoric, but perhaps also of Kremlin policy because of course one of the goals of Putin's war on Ukraine is that he no longer wants Ukraine to exist. Russia would like to sort of take over Ukraine and they say that they're fighting not against the Ukrainian people, but of course what they call the Kyiv regime.

So the Republicans are seeming to take their cue from President Trump, the House Majority Leader Mike Johnson is now not set to meet with him, even though Zelenskyy will be meeting with his Democratic counterpart, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. So this is the political roller coaster that Zelenskyy is having to navigate while in the U.S. and really sort of sets up why there is now so much weight on this meeting with Biden today.

CHURCH: And Clare, what more can you tell us about these threats from Russia's President Putin to use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine?

SEBASTIAN: So this, I think from the Russian perspective, now that there is a risk, quite a serious risk, perhaps, that the West will grant permission for Ukraine to use long-range missiles on Russian soil, there is a fear in Russia that they are not taking the threat of Russian escalation seriously enough. And so Russia is sort of tightening up that red line here.

Now, Russian nuclear doctrine before this did allow for a first strike if Russia felt that its very existence was threatened with conventional weapons. But what Putin said on Wednesday is that they are now sort of adding a point where if Russia feels that it is under threat with conventional weapons from a non-nuclear country but supported in some way by a nuclear country, they would consider that a joint attack.

So clearly this is a direct response to that issue. with those long- range missiles and Russia as it has done throughout this war rattling that nuclear saber but it is something that certainly the West does watch very closely since we know that certainly at one point in this war in the in the autumn of 2022 there were serious concerns in the US that Russia came very close to using a tactical nuclear weapon on Ukraine. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Our thanks to Clare Sebastian joining us live from London. I Appreciate it.

Well millions in the Southeast U.S. are bracing for Hurricane Helene. The huge storm could bring catastrophic winds, rain and storm surge. We'll have details for you after the break.

Plus Israel talks about a potential ground incursion into Lebanon as diplomats put out a new proposal to avoid an all-out war. We'll have details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: We are tracking Hurricane Helene as it heads toward the U.S. At this hour, more than 86 million people across five states in the southeast are under tropical storm or hurricane watches and warnings. Helene is a massive storm with tropical storm force winds extending up to 345 miles that is 550 kilometers from the center.

It's currently located in the southern Gulf of Mexico, heading towards. Florida. Thousands have evacuated the area. Others are boarding up homes and businesses. The storm is expected to make landfall later today as a Category 4 hurricane with catastrophic winds and storm surge.

Joining me now is John MacDonald. He is the Director of Levy County, Florida's Emergency Management Department. Good to have you with us.

JOHN MACDONALD, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR, LEVY COUNTY, FLORIDA: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: So your entire county is under a hurricane warning. What's being done to prepare for this storm?

MACDONALD: Okay, so far we've done, we did a mandatory evacuation for all mobile homes, manufactured homes, R.V. parks, all the coastal communities and all low-lying areas. That went out yesterday. We opened our shelters up. We went ahead and preempted that. We got our shelters. We did two general population shelters, one of them is pet friendly and then we also did a special needs shelter. Those opened up at 10:00 this morning so we've been doing sheltering operations all day. We sent out multiple messages and all that specifically for the storm

surge, the potential storm surge that we're seeing and some of the wind amounts that we were looking at.

CHURCH: And John, what is your message to those residents who have decided to stay?

MACDONALD: We keep, we keep punching that message out, you know, letting them know about this storm surge. I've worked here for 21 years. This is the highest surge numbers I've ever seen. So, you know, we've had multiple storms, you know, come across the coastline here in Levy County.

We're on our third one in a year. So it's nothing new to us to deal with these tropical cyclones, but it is people get amnesia a little bit from them. If you get a few, you know, some of them that are not so bad and you get some that are, you know, a little worse than others.

[03:35:02]

So we keep pushing that same messaging out there. A lot of graphics that we pull off the National Hurricane Center and in our local -- local national weather service we take those graphics and we push all that stuff out through all of our applications. We have an app that goes through emergency management, we have social media, you know Facebook, Twitter, all those accounts and all that. So we push things there and then we also have our levydisaster.com website where residents get that information from.

CHURCH: And last month of course Hurricane Debbie flooded parts of your county and caused power outages and then last year Hurricane Adalia devastated places like Cedar Key. So how are people coping with these ever increasing storms roaring ashore in your community?

MACDONALD: Yeah, it's a, it could be, this could potentially be an economic disaster for the whole western side of Florida from Levy County north. Most of those counties, those coastal communities, they're all fiscally constrained rural counties and all of them have been hit with the same impacts that Levy County has all the way through.

Most of them a little more damage the farther north you go. But we've got two communities in our county, two different type -- two completely different type areas. Cedar Key being more tourism based, more of -- they do have residential residents out there, but it's mostly tourism based, you know, that type of atmosphere. And then we have Yankeetown, which is on the south end of the county that it's in the corner of the Withlacoochee River and it's a coastal community and it's mostly residential.

Every one of these locations in the last three years or in the last year, this will be the third storm, we are still dealing with homes that have not been repaired from Adalia only to get hit by Debbie again and then have to go back through that whole process and then here we come again. So it's a -- it's a -- it's an economic this is going to be, you know, a pretty big economical disaster for this portion of the state of Florida.

CHURCH: And John, what are your biggest fears as Helene approaches your county and is set to make landfall later today?

MACDONALD: Yeah, my biggest fear, we're looking at our most likely arrival of the tropical storm force winds, but there'll be surge pushing in and that surge is going to come, the tides, we're already dealing with an astronomical high tide cycle this week anyway, so our tides have been running about, I think the last one looked at was about 2.9 feet above our normal high tides, so you have to include that into the surge amounts and these numbers that they're giving us for our coast.

So it's a storm surge with these numbers and all that. It's pretty impressive to see numbers get that high for a storm, it's a larger storm. We've had storms pass on the same path like that. But the storm surge is the biggest threat that we're worried about here. Because once it starts, you get about one or two foot of water.

You can get out of there quick enough. But anything past three foot or higher, you're pretty much done. You can't even drop cars in it or anything. So, our biggest fear is trying to get these folks to take heed of these evacuation orders and get out of that surge. We always tell everybody, you know, run from the surge, hide from the wind, but that message, we keep driving that. We've been driving it all day.

CHURCH: John MacDonald, thanks so much for joining us and do stay safe.

MACDONALD: Yeah, thank you.

CHURCH: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is headed to New York ahead of his expected address to the U.N. General Assembly on Friday. Hours before his departure, the U.S. and its allies announced a three-week ceasefire proposal for Israel and Hezbollah. Diplomats are concerned the fighting between them could snowball into an all-out war.

Israel ramped up its strikes on Lebanon on Wednesday, which have killed more than 600 people this week. Israel's army chief now says a potential ground incursion into Lebanon is on the table. But Iran is making it clear it won't stay on the sidelines if a full-scale war breaks out.

We want to go now to Hong Kong, where we are joined by Ivan Watson. Good to see you, Ivan. So we are learning about new Israeli strikes into Lebanon, which are actually still happening right now as we speak. What can you tell us about these?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well that's right. I mean, we're getting fresh reports and seeing live footage, the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes on Lebanese territory. The Israeli military is saying it conducted at least 75 bombing runs into Lebanon overnight alone. So the effort right now that is led by the U.S. and France announcing a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire to stop all-out war. Well, I think that many observers would argue that the war has already begun.

[03:40:03]

The French-American initiative calls for a 21-day immediate ceasefire to try to calm tensions, to avert a wider regional war. The announcement comes with an added endorsement from Germany, the European Union, Canada, Australia, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and several other countries. The big question, of course, is will the two warring parties, Israel and Hezbollah, agree to this kind of agreement?

We've heard from an Israeli official speaking to CNN that a main purpose of the Israeli Prime Minister's trip to New York is to engage in diplomacy around this. But already there are a growing number of voices inside Israel that are coming out against a ceasefire.

Among them, the hardline right-wing politician and finance minister in Netanyahu's cabinet, that's Bezalel Smotrich, who said in a tweet basically that the campaign in the north that's in Lebanon should end in one scenario, crushing Hezbollah and denying its ability to harm the residents of the north. He does not want the Hezbollah militia to be able to, as he puts it, reorganize for 21 days. He says it's surrender or war with Hezbollah, no other option.

Interesting to note that on the opposition side in Israel, the head of the opposition, Yair Lapid, he said yes, Israel should accept this ceasefire proposal, but only for seven days and it has to include Hezbollah moving away from Israel's northern border. We have not heard an official response from Hezbollah yet. It has continued to fire dozens of rockets and missiles into Israeli territory. It does appear that it has not completely unleashed its full arsenal against Israel yet.

Yesterday, on Wednesday, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for firing a single ballistic missile, the first, we believe, of its kind at the Israeli central commercial capital of Tel Aviv at, it says, the headquarters of the Mossad intelligence agency that was successfully shot down by Israeli air defenses. No casualties reported.

And many analysts would argue that this was a symbolic warning of capabilities that Hezbollah has, but seems so far to avoid using in this growing confrontation.

The Lebanese Health Ministry has announced that in aerial bombardment by Israel of Lebanon on Wednesday alone at least 81 people were killed. There are reports of hundreds of thousands of Lebanese who have been forced to flee their homes, sorry, the United Nations saying some 90,000 Lebanese forced to flee their homes after just three days of Israeli aerial bombardment. And recall on Monday, more than 100 women and children in Lebanon were killed by the Israeli bombing campaign. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Ivan Watson, many thanks for that live report. I Appreciate it.

Well, after more than five decades, a Japanese man has been acquitted of murder. The story of the world's longest serving death row inmate, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. The world's longest-serving death row inmate has had his name cleared. That's according to national broadcaster NHK. A Japanese court acquitted the 88-year-old. He had been sentenced to death in 1968 for murdering a family. A retrial was ordered after new evidence appeared to show he was innocent. The legal saga has fueled calls to abolish the death penalty in Japan.

And CNN's Hanako Montgomery joins us now live from Tokyo. Good to see you again, Hanako. So what is the latest on this acquittal and why is it happening at this time?

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, of course, for Hakamata supporters and also for human rights activists, this is a really just a joyous moment that he's been acquitted of these crimes. But many in Japan are also asking whether justice has really been served. Hakamata has spent nearly five decades behind bars for a majority of his life for the court to now find that he's never committed those crimes. And these are years that he cannot get back.

Now just some details about Hakamata's case and the timing of his acquittal. He was first arrested in the 60's for allegedly killing his boss and his boss' family. Now at the time of his arrest, he initially confessed, but according to the judge, he was actually made to confess by the police, who used violence and also threats.

And ever since making that forced and false confession, Hakamata has always maintained his innocence. You can see that in the hundreds of letters that he sent to his family over the years.

Now, the timing of this retrial comes first actually back in 2014 when it was first granted. And that's in large part because new evidence in his case emerged. And as we learn today, according to the judge's ruling, that evidence is in fact the fact that the prosecution and the police fabricated evidence to convict him.

They planted articles of clothing at the scene of the crime that they said belonged to Hakamata that they said contained blood stains that matched the DNA of Hakamata. But again, according to the court's ruling today, that evidence was indeed fabricated and Hakamata was found innocent.

Now these all point to, according to human rights activists, why Japan should abolish the death penalty. Outside of the United States, Japan is the only G7 country that actually still practices the death penalty. And according to human rights activists and lawyers, it can lead sometimes to falseful convictions and wrongful convictions like in Hakamata's case.

Now also as we've seen over the years, Hakamata's mental health has deteriorated significantly because of all the time that he spent behind bars and also because in Japan they practice same-day execution. Unlike in the United States, death row inmates are only informed that they'll be hanged a couple of hours before.

Now imagine waking up every single day wondering if that will be your very last day. And of course that has taken a huge mental toll on Hakamata. And again, that's why human rights activists and lawyers have argued that Japan's criminal justice system needs to change in order to provide better rights for these inmates. Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Hanako Montgomery, joining us live from Tokyo. Many thanks for that report.

Well, both chambers of the U.S. Congress approved a stop gap spending bill that will avert a government shutdown for now.

[03:50:00]

The bill will only fund the government until December 20, at which point the fight over funding will resume. Neither Democrats nor Republicans appear to have any appetite for a big budget battle and possible shutdown prior to the November election, the results of which will determine the strength of each side's hand during spending talks.

And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Two five-year-old giant pandas, a gift from Beijing, have arrived in Hong Kong. They were greeted with a welcoming ceremony after landing at Hong Kong International Airport. The creatures will join four other giant pandas at the island's Ocean Park animal theme park.

But first, they will be quarantined for 30 days before they make their public debut. Beijing sent the giant pandas to Hong Kong to mark 75 years of communist party rule in China. And our Kristie Lu Stout has details now from Hong Kong.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The motorcade is arriving. Two very important pandas are being given the presidential treatment here in Hong Kong. These are national treasures that were gifted by the Chinese central government to Hong Kong at the October National Day holiday next week.

[03:55:04]

Now, the pandas, they touched down earlier before midday today, Thursday, in Hong Kong. They were given a welcoming ceremony at the Hong Kong International Airport. And then they were given a very special escort by elite police officers on motorcycles to their new home here at Hong Kong's Ocean Park.

At Ocean Park, they will undergo a 30-day quarantine. After that, they will have about a month to acclimate, to get adjusted to their new home and new surroundings. But the public won't get a chance to see the dynamic giant panda duo until mid-December.

Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Caitlin Clark's highly-watched rookie season with the WNBA has come to an end. Clark's team, the Indiana Fever, was eliminated from the league's play-offs on Wednesday. The 22-year-old scored 14 points in the first half of the game against the Connecticut Sun.

But the Sun took a lead into half-time and though the Fever tried to make a comeback, Connecticut would defeat Indiana 87-81. Still, Clark led her team to its first playoff appearance since 2016 and was named the unanimous AP-WNBA Rookie of the Year.

Well, the search for a young Elle Woods is on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Do you have a resume?

REESE WITHERSPOON, PLAYED AS ELLE WOODS IN "LEGALLY BLONDE": Yes, I do.

UNKNOWN: It's pink.

WITHERSPOON: Oh, and it's scented. I think it gives it a little something extra. Don't you think?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: "Legally Blonde" star Reese Witherspoon announced an open casting call to find the next Elle Woods. The actress is co-producing a prequel series to the 2001 classic that will follow a teenage Woods before her journey to Harvard Law. Witherspoon directed her followers to submit auditions and said she's excited to see all the, quote, "fabulous takes on everyone's favorite Gemini vegetarian."

Thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" continues next with Max Foster in London.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)